I’m a boat owner and you know what they say about us; “The two happiest days for a boat owner are the day they buy the boat and the day they sell it.” I can certainly relate but for me, it’s not a boat, but a business, that provided me with the two happiest days of my life.

Always looking for What Next I convinced my wife, Julie, that 2012 was the right time to start a business. There had been many false starts in the past

First time opening the door on what would be our new spa.

but I was determined that this one was going to succeed. In June of 2012, full of optimism and excitement, we signed the franchise agreement for a spa. Fast forward nearly five years and we walked out of the spa for the last time also filled with optimism and excitement.

The intervening five years were often difficult, sometimes enjoyable and were marked with missed goals, slower than expected but not slow, growth,

Our final exit from the spa!

but also with profits, and progress. In the end we had built a business that provided additional income and had enough value that we could sell for a profit.

As I put the key in the door for the first time in October of 2012, I was thrilled to start a new adventure. After we had decided to sell and we took that last selfie as we walked to the car, we were just as thrilled to start another new adventure. That’s what asking What Next is all about, continued growth and reinvention. If you ask What Next, the end is never the conclusion.

The path leading away from that front door is just as overgrown and full of obstacles as the path through the front door was in 2012. I’m better prepared for some obstacles but there will be others that are unexpected and prove challenging. Success doesn’t make things any easier, as a matter of fact, success makes things harder; there is more to hold onto to, more to juggle and keep track of.

Of all the memories and experience I gained from that business it’s those two days that I look back on most fondly.